The time for setting New Year’s Resolutions has come again.  Do you have lofty expectaions of what you’ll accomplish each year, but find it can be challenging to follow through and stick to it? It can be hard without a plan. Let Simply Placed help.

This is the first in a series of posts about how to achieve goal setting success in the new year (or any time!).  Join us in making your resolutions/goals successful this year!

Tip #1 Reward Yourself – What will accomplishing your goal mean to you? What will motivate you to stick to it and reach the desired result? How will you reward yourself for accomplishing your goal? Choose something that you’ll look forward to. Post a picture of it in a visible place. It could be a tangible item that you’ll treat yourself to, or an experience, or even the gift of “downtime”. Depending on the degree of difficulty of the goal, choose a reward that is appropriate.

But, don’t just wait until the goal is achieved to reward yourself. Celebrate “wins” along the way to ultimate success.  Decide ahead of time on some “mini-rewards” so that you’ll have something to look forward to in the short term and the long term. How can you reward yourself for accomplishing the milestones along the way to the end result?

Reaching a goal takes dedication and hard work.  You deserve more than a pat on the back.

How do you choose your goals?  What have you used to reward yourself?  We want to hear your ideas!

Stay tuned next week for more tips on Goal Setting Success.

Happy New Year! May 2012 be fabulous for you both personally and professionally. We plan to make it a year to remember!

The post-holiday slow down is here. Can you feel it? Does it seem hard to get things done this week? Lacking of motivation? Maybe you’re ready to check some things off your list, but you can’t reach anyone or get calls or emails back.  Difficult to focus on “normal business” this week when it seems as if everyone else is on vacation, taking the week off, or just ”kinda working”? Check out this article from Fast Company for some ideas on how to utilize the rest of this week productively and position yourself to start off 2012 strong. You’ll tackle some things that are best done during more “quiet” down time anyway, or that are often put off when things are moving quickly.

Let us know how you use your downtime or take advantage of  your quiet office this week. Oh, and if you’re one of the ones truly on vacation, then relish in the rest, relaxation, recreation and rejuvination that are sure to result. Enjoy!

Time for the Tuesday Ten Minute Toss Challenge!  RIGHT NOW spend 10 minutes tossing your old, broken and tired decorations while you’re putting them away for next year.  Ten minutes is plenty of time to sort through your holiday decorations while you’re boxing them up for storage until next winter.  Are some of your wreaths faded to an unacceptable shade of greenish-yellow?  Do you have a strand of lights where so many of them are broken you wonder how it ever turned on in the first place?  Some electrical decorations can become hazardous as they age, take this opportunity to embrace our challenge and tell how how it went!

If you have ideas for a Tuesday Ten Minute Toss Challenge, please let us know! In the meantime, check back weekly for a new challenge and make sure to join in the fun. We look forward to hearing about how you do with the challenges.

Time for the Tuesday Ten Minute Toss Challenge!  RIGHT NOW spend 10 minutes tossing out your old used candles before you have your extended family over for that candle-lit holiday meal.  Ten minutes is enough time to identify those long tapers with cracks, toss those candles that are so over-used you can no longer light them and discard any lopsided candles that are always dripping wax on your tablecloth, counter, etc.  Even if you think you could make that dangerously-cracked candlestick work, it isn’t worth the risk of setting your holiday table-scape on fire. 

If you have ideas for a Tuesday Ten Minute Toss Challenge, please let us know! In the meantime, check back weekly for a new challenge and make sure to join in the fun. We look forward to hearing about how you do with the challenges.

Take our challenge now and then tell us how you did!

Traveling during the holidays can be downright stressful, especially if your plans include a few stops at our nation’s airports.  So to make your season more organized and joyful we have complied the best tips for holiday air travel. 

1. Wrap gifts after you arrive at your final destination.  Don’t wrap gifts and packages if you’re planning on carrying them on board.  All items carried on board are subject to inspection and may be unwrapped at the security checkpoint!  Instead, put gifts in your checked baggage and pack wrapping paper.
2. Check in before you get to the airport.  Most airlines allow you to use web check-in from 1 to 24 hours before your flight.  You can then print your boarding pass in advance and have it ready when you arrive at the airport. You can add passport information, change your seat assignment, upgrade to First Class, and print a receipt for your flight.  You can also see if your airline allows mobile check-in or so you can check in on your way from your mobile device.
3. Plan for extra travel time getting to and from the airport.  Airport drives and parking lots can be very busy, overcrowded and congested during the holiday travel season.   Give yourself extra time getting to and from the airport.  Travelers are encouraged to take a shuttle to the airport or park at a  parking lot nearby the airport.  Give yourself extra time to park as well,  as many lots may be full.
4. Plan extra time to check your baggage and for getting through the security line.  The ticket counters and security lines are very busy during the holiday travel season. Plan to arrive extra early and give yourself some time to relax instead of worrying that you won’t make it through the line in time.  That way, even if you are early for your flight you have time for that cup of coffee or snack before your long flight.
5. Plan in advance for your pet’s travel.  Because of a very high volume of baggage, you may not be able to travel with Fido or Fluffy in the baggage and cargo compartments during the peak holiday season. Additionally pet travel can be restricted on airline flights during extreme weather conditions.  Plan ahead and give yourself some options and a back-up plan.

Safe travels and Happy Holidays to you!

With the ease of cell phones and email, the special personal touch of sending a physical card for any occasion has become  rare.  There is a great feeling that comes with receiving a card in the mail but it can be hard to find the time to buy postage, cards, envelopes, locate that address you have somewhere or sit down to hand-write a message. 

With the hectic holiday season approaching it’s a great time to find a solution for all those greetings you planned to send eventually and Simply Placed has found a time-saver for you! 

Fortunately, there is an online service that can help take the stress and hassle out of sending a personal, physical card.  SendOutCards does the work for you and can even print your personalized card in your own handwriting!  You can also create a card using a family photo.

The SendOutCards system lets you conveniently send those holiday cards with the click of a button (and it does the same great job year-round for birthday, anniversary, “thinking of you” or thank you cards without the hassle of pen, paper, stamps, envelopes or mailboxes).  You can choose your custom card, add a personal photo, write your message and click send.  SendOutCards will print, stuff, stamp and mail the physical card for you. All this for about a dollar ($1!) per card.

Want to know more? We recommend this product and service so highly as a tool to help our clients get and stay organized with their card-sending and “stay in touch” efforts, that we’re distributors and would be happy to help you set up an account. Basic accounts, that give you enough points to send about 10 traditional cards per month, run just $9.80 per month. You can click here to learn more. View the quick 3 minute video for an overview. From there you can either get started with the service, or, if you want to see how it works, feel free to send a card on us!

How often do you send greeting cards in the mail?  Do you have a plan for sending holiday greetings this year?  We want to know!

There’s a lot going on in our homes for the next few months, holiday guests, gift wrapping and meal planning just to name a few.  Simply Placed has three ways we can help you have a more joyful season to fit any budget.

For just $24.99 you can get our Simply Organized: Holidays eBook and Workbook bundle! This is a great resource to help you stay organized with your holiday details. Tips, worksheets, checklists and ideas abound and are suitable for printing and, if you choose, putting into a binder as a fantastic resource you’ll refer to again and again during the holiday season. Don’t need both? $17.99 gets you the e-Book alone or the eWorkbook alone. Pick your poison!

For $150 we can help you come up with a specific plan of attack for the season. We’ll work with you to brainstorm your lists, create an action plan and help you identify when to do what (and what not to do!), so that the stress and overwhelm of the season begins to melt away.

Starting at $225 (price dependant on number of hours used or purchased) you can also make an appointment with one of our organizers to get your home in top shape for holiday entertaining!  This is the perfect time to get your pantry in order so everything you need to make the best holiday feast is right where you need it.  You might also be expecting some overnight guests in November or December and with that comes the need to organize the guest room, linen closet, coat closet, kitchen, or other rooms!  Let us also help you unearth your dining room table so you can use it for family meals and entertaining, not as a holding place for piles of paper or things needing to find a home elsewhere. 

Need help with some of the details and errands of the season – shopping, wrapping, shipping, organizing your party plans or holiday menu, etc.? We can help with those things as well. Just ask.

We can help you for just a few hours, or save some money with one of our 12 or 24 hour packages. (Bonus! With the purchase of a 24 hour package this month or next, you’ll receive the Simply Organized Holidays eBook and workbook for free!).

What ever your budget this holiday season, Simply Placed is here to help. Please let us know how best to support you in having more joy and less stress during this magical time of the year.

Can you feel the change in the air where you live? Here in the Pacific Northwest, its been chilly the last few days, with talk of the snow in the forecast in some areas. As you reach into your coat closet for a warm coat, your gloves and scarf to wrap up, take an extra few minutes to pull out items you are done with that can help keep someone in need warm this winter.

There’s never been a better time to clean out your coat closet!  This holiday season, The Container Store is partnering with One Warm Coat, an organization dedicated to supporting local coat drives.  During November and December, customers can drop off a gently used coat at any Container Store location. 

In addition to gently used coats, they are accepting new sweaters, jackets, sweatshirts, hats and mittens.  Here in the Puget Sound area of Washington, the items donated will benefit those in need through the  Bellevue St. Vincent de Paul Society.  For additional information, readThe Container Store’s blog post about the drive.

If you’d like help cleaning out your closets, please call on a Simply Placed organizer. We’d be happy to help you. As a value added service, we’ll even deliver your items for donation directly to the Container Store on your behalf after the session. Whether you tackle your closets on your own, or reach out to us for help (we’ll make it fun, we promise!), it will be a win-win situation. You’ll save time, money and stress when your closets are free of clutter and you can more easily find what you need, when you need it, and you’ll be helping others in need with your donated items at the same time. Win-Win!

Stay warm on these chilly days. Great weather for organizing, in our opinions!

Its hard to believe next week is Thanksgiving. Time sure flies when you’re having fun … and when the holiday season is upon us. The infamous day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, is known for pre-dawn shopping specials, snagging deals, kicking off holiday shopping, and yes, for crowds, stampedes and craziness. Want to avoid all that? There are some Black Friday online specials to be had as well.

In fact, online shopping can be a way to go anytime during the holiday season (not just on Black Friday) to avoid crowds, save time and money, gas, and to shop from the comfort of your own home, yes, even in your PJs. Online shopping can be one way to stay organized and on budget with your shopping as well, as long as you make a plan and stick to it. There’s lots of great sites from which to chose, but one I had recent experience with, that I’ll feature, is Red Envelope. Red Envelope was just what I needed to find two unique, personal gifts for two “hard to shop for” people on my list.

You may want to check out our post on the Art of Holiday Gift Giving and take us up on our suggestion to start by making a list of who you need to shop for, what ideas you may have for them, or what you know they like or are “in to”, and your budget per person. This can take the overwhelm away from the whole shopping experience, help you stay organized and help you make the most of your online shopping experience. You can go to a site like Red Envelope, narrow your search down by person (for him, for her, for kids, for the sports enthusiast, etc.) and then peruse their offerings to see if you see something you think your recipient would like. One of the nice things about Red Envelope is that they have lots of unique gifts – things you won’t find at the mall, and that you can personalize many of them, making the gift that much more meaningful and special.

Check out their holiday offerings and specials – you may want to get started on this page for things they are featuring for the holidays that are new, unique, or seasonal. There’s lots to chose from and I can tell you from firsthand experience that the online shopping experience was easy and painless. Take it from me – I’m in my PJs and just checked two things off my list (for two of the most difficult to buy for individuals to boot!).

What’s your favorite online shopping site or source for unique gifts? What’s your favorite time and money saver when it comes to holiday shopping and checking things off your list? We’d love to hear from you!

Disclosure: This is sponsored content as we have been given a small gift card from Red Envelope in order to test the site and share our experience. That being said, we do not blog about anything we do not believe in and Red Envelope did not edit our post or direct our content in any way.

Stress-proof yourself for the holidays with Simply Placed!

To help better prepare you and your family for the busy holiday season, we’re offering our Simply Organized: Holidays eBook and Workbook  free with the purchase of a 24 hour hands-on organizing package!

How can Simply Placed help you during the holidays?  Do you have a dining room table that needs clearing off before you can host your family for a festive meal?  Is there a guest room in your home that needs organizing before your out-of-town family or friends arrive? Want to finally organize your kitchen and pantry so that holiday meal planning and entertaining is that much easier?

Or maybe you need some assistance with all that decorating and gift wrapping in the next month?  Save yourself the stress, book a 24 hour organizing package and get a great holiday organizational guide free!

Book your 24 hour hands-on organizing package anytime during November or December to get your free Simply Organized: Holidays package.

Do you have guests over during this season?  How do you prepare?  We’d love to hear about it!